I'll be moving house in a few months and thus have been refraining from stocking up too heavily on staples. Instead, I have vowed make my way through the miscellaneous packets and jars and cans in my cupboards, which is sometimes fun and sometimes an effort. A few of those items have been lingering on the shelf for good reason and it's getting down to the worst of the bunch. Soon, I will have to get 'creative' with such uninspiring ingredients as canned corn and cut green beans (I hate canned vegetables - why are these on my shelf?) There's also an alarmingly large stash of pasta to wade through.
As a modern American living in a city that affords me a vast array of food choices, I can usually have whatever I feel like eating at any given moment. I rarely have to adjust my palate to accommodate a lack of something. Worst case scenario is that it's a cold, rainy night and I don't feel like going out to pick up the kind of cheese that I would prefer to grate over my pasta, so I have to make do with what's already in the fridge. But for the most part, I have the amazing privilege of eating pretty much anything I want to, when I want to.
Working with my cupboard challenge has shown me how accustomed I've become to this unlimited choice and how it has actually, strangely enough, narrowed my options by keeping me in the safe zone of my own predilections and cravings. It's been challenging but I'm starting to appreciate being pushed to explore beyond my limited appetite and stretched to figure out how to make something with so-so appeal seem appetizing. What can I do to this box of butternut squash soup to make it something I want to eat? Ah yes, maybe a plop of yogurt and a drizzle of truffle oil. Or some fresh minced cilantro and chili. Or even just a few springs of fresh thyme from the plant on the windowsill and a handful croutons for crunch.
Limits can feel restrictive, but they also present new opportunities and encourage creative thinking. Wendell Berry is often quoted as saying "The mind that is not baffled is not employed" and it's that bafflement, that very act of trying to solve a problem that adds a spark and new possibilities to my routine. So I'm actually grateful for my shrinking pantry and find I'm looking forward to what demands it will bring me next. But seriously, those green beans are going to be a tough one.
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I moved to a new apartment this week, and had been doing the same thing for the preceding months. I did a great job using up almost everything except for a few bags of different flours that I wanted to have on hand anyway, vinegars, etc. It was really satisfying to see the empty pantry and know that I didn't waste anything, or waste the space/energy of moving it to the new place.
But, I have to say, it was SO gratifying to make the post-move grocery run and buy EVERYTHING that I had been wanting to eat. I look forward to reading a meditation on that :) In the mean time, good luck with those green beans.
I love Wendell Berry--he's one of my favorites for nuggets of wisdom.
Hey, I'm not a huge fan of canned green beans either, but I've used them to good effect in a minestrone before.
Canned green beans? What were you thinking? Did you buy those during the financial panic? I keep a good stock of canned beans--but of the kind one usually buys dry--black, chickpeas, kidneys, pintos, etc.
I like doing what you're doing from time to time--in fact I've started doing it this week. Working on freezer & pantry both, and not going to buy any meats in particular until the freezer is emptied out.
If the canned goods are within date, you can always donate them to your local food bank. Or, if you really feel that you must use them, how about in a pot pie?
I'm trying to work down our pantry, too. Problem is, the hubs is the main grocery shopper and he doesn't seem to believe me when I give him a list of only perishable items like milk and fresh produce. ;-)
Working through the pantry can be painful, but as someone said above, minestrone is your friend. When I have too many canned veggies for my liking (how DID they get in there?) I start to think soups. A simple vegetable soup with those tiny bits of pasta that I had to have but have never used will do the trick.
I've started keeping a list of pantry staples on the backside of the pantry door. That way, I can see quickly what I have and when I use it I can cross it off. I even started putting a "Need to buy" list next to it, of things that I could use in the pantry to supplement that canned corn and unused pasta.
We do this at least one or two months a year--this year we started at the beginning of our term (third week of January) and are continuing until spring break (third week of March). Other than produce and some dairy, we have been using what we have, both in the pantry and in the (very well stocked) freezer. Since it has been a crazy time for us work-wise (we work for a state university in Wisconsin--enough said), the ability to use the pantry has really simplified our lives and has been kind of fun.
If it were me, the canned veggies would go to the local food pantry--that's what I tend to do when I make that kind of buying error (and then I remind myself--never again).
why impose low nutrient foods on the foodbank?
how about using those green beans in a 4 bean salad, with lots of vinegar and herbs?
Is the corn just plain corn? Not creamed (shudder)corn? It works in a lot of recipes. Put it (drained of course)in a corn bread. Or, add it to taco meat. You can add it to chili-though I know chili purists would balk at that. I like the idea of using the beans in minestrone or a bean salad. I hate the mentality of giving something you wouldn't eat to the food bank. It smacks of "well, they're poor, they'll eat anything." Buy food you'd eat and give it to the foodbank.
WHO am I saving these San Marzano tomatoes for??? Am I NOT WORTHY of the drizzle-quality olive oil (which is now past its prime)?? I started doing a pantry/freezer "cleanse" every season when I realized there was ~$250 worth of forgotten, frozen, or otherwise-hoarded food sitting untouched my house. With spring on the way, I'm now powering through frozen ground turkey, whole wheat flour, and bags of nuts...
Put those green beans into baked beans--it's unusual, but they work pretty well, especially if you are making a big batch with a variety of types of beans in it.
Ok, I am probably making a mistake here but I never said someone should give non-edible food to a food bank. There are lots of people who like and eat food I don't--including things like canned food (I know people who prefer canned veggies--they like the taste). The food banks also want them--they don't want things in jars since they break. I feel that if I find things in my pantry that I will not or can no longer eat (i.e., I have developed some allergies to foods like peanuts that I can no longer eat) I feel it is better to pass them along.
And,, frankly we all make food purchasing mistakes sometimes. That doesn't mean such food should be wasted if there is a source that wants it.
'Tis the season for emptying the pantry. I've been finding things I didn't buy and have no idea how they got there. I suspect friends who cooked for me when I was ill. Including the aforementioned creamed corn that everyone seems to hate so much. I used it to make cornbread. And it turned out surprisingly well.
The flip side of emptying the pantry is the joy in restocking it. That's an equally satisfying and fun task for me.
Interesting concerns regarding pantry, that sounds like food hoarders' diary. First thought that hits my brain is how can you stock up on crap you don't like, don't know what to do with it or even hate? How freezer turns out so full you need to "re-stock" or cleanse it? What do you eat then? Are you living in the middle of nowhere?
I buy food when I actually need it in reasonable amounts (once or twice a week), stocking on something it turns into clutter or worse - expires and needs to go to trash is a mindless waste of money. Less is more.
Pantry-cleaning is always an interesting project. I always end up with dregs of bulk items (2 tablespoons of quinoa?), spices that got shoved in the back of a cupboard, or a half-bag of frozen veggies that sank to the bottom of the freezer. It's a challenge I enjoy from time-to-time, though.
@MLaura -- maybe you need to clean out your closet and get rid of those judgypants.
@MLaura... it's not wasteful to buy in bulk or when things are on sale. For example, I eat a lot of rice. I buy it in 25 lb bags. It's much cheaper than buying it 1 lb at a time. And like most dry goods it doesn't go bad if properly stored.
Oh, and there's nothing wrong with living in the middle of nowhere. Some of us like that. I hope you never face an event (earthquake, snowstorm, civil unrest) that prevents you from shopping. Food stores have other purposes too...